Traveller (Shad x sick Reader)
by Carmenbeckett
Summary: You've been caught out in the rain while traveling to Castle Town and have come down with a nasty cold. Who better than Shad to nurse you back to health? (There is a serious lack of Shad x Reader fics. I want to remedy this problem)


It was raining, had been for several days, and you'd been out in it most of the time. Traveling to Castle Town was taking much longer than you'd planned, made worse by the drenching rain and chilling wind. For awhile you thought maybe you'd never make it to the town.

But, no! Up ahead! You could make out the outline of the castle, and that could only mean that you were getting close. You broke into a staggering run, your body a bit rundown from spending so much time out in the elements.

You hadn't gone far when a horse crossed your path, making you stop. The horse reared, and its rider spent a while minute calming it. "What are you doing out in this weather?" the rider asked. He was a young man in green garb.

"T-trying to get to the town," you stuttered, teeth chattering. The man frowned slightly.

"Well, if you stay out here much longer, you're bound to catch your death. Come on, I'll take you to Castle Town." He held out a hand to you, pulling you up into the horse as soon as you took it. "Hold on tight," he said, and you dizzily complied. Then you were speeding across the field, making for the town.

You arrived at the drawbridge and the rider's horse refused to go any further. You slipped off its back, the young man following close behind. "Do you have a place to stay?" he asked, "There really isn't much for shelter in town, and you'll freeze to death if you stay outside."

"I hadn't counted on it being so cold," you mumbled, "No, I haven't got anywhere to stay."

"Okay, well I'll take you to Telma's. I'm sure she'd be more than happy to let you stay there until it stops raining. Come on!" He took you by the hand and started into town. "I'm Link by the way."

"[n-name]," you answered, hugging your arms close to your chest.

"And where are you from, [name]?" Link asked, waving to some of the castle guards as we entered town.

"H-here originally," you answered, "but I've lived in th-the desert for several years now. It started raining just as I was leaving and hasn't stopped."

Link's eyebrow shot up. "But that's an incredibly long trip to travel by foot! And you've been out in this the whole time?" You nodded. "Well, hurry it up then! You could catch hypothermia out in weather like this!" He quickened his pace, turning off the cobblestone walk into a sort of back alley.

"Oh, I'm a-alright, r-r-really," you stammered, your voice giving you away as much as your shivering did. It really was terribly cold, even in Castle Town. Most people were indoors right now, not out in the rain.

You descended a couple flights of stairs and found yourself in front of Telma's bar. The building was familiar to you, though the name was not. Telma hadn't been running this place when you left all those years ago. Of course, you'd only been a child at the time and you couldn't recall who used to run the bar, only that it hadn't been her.

Link pushed the door opened and ushered you inside. The heat hit you like a wave, and the sheer contrast in temperature made a tremor run through your entire body. The woman at the counter glanced up from cleaning cups and smiled warmly at Link.

"Honey, I didn't know you would be back so soon," she said, "I'm afraid no one else is here at the moment, though I expect Shad might be stopping by any minute now if the rain hasn't kept him from going outside..." That's when she noticed you standing there, still shivering violently at Link's side. "Oh, honey, who's this? A friend?"

"Not exactly," Link said, rubbing the back of his neck, "She was out traveling in the rain and I said I'd help her find someplace warm to stay. Could she stay here until the rain stops?"

"Well sure, honey, but there isn't an extra place for sleeping here." Telma smiled down at you. "What's your name, honey?"

"It's [na-...n-...]." Your breath hitched and your eyes watered a bit as you buried your face in your hands. "Hah-tchoo! Hh-tchoo!" Sniffling softly, you blushed and rubbed your nose. "S-sorry. I'm [name]."

"You seem to have a bit of a cold there, honey. Here. Come sit by the fire," Telma waved you over and looked back at Link, "I can take care of her if you've got something important to do, honey. Go ahead and go." Link nodded, glanced at you for a second, and then slipped out the door into the rain.

"Thank you," you muttered softly, settling down in front of the fire, "Even if there's no b-bed, at least it's warm here."

Telma nodded and went back to cleaning the cups. "I wish I had a couch for you to sleep on, but I guess you'll just have to make do." The door of the bar swung open, you could hear it even though you couldn't see who it was from where you were sitting.

"Oh my! What a dreadful downpour! I'm afraid I might be a little behind schedule, Telma. My apologies," came a voice, and you hear footsteps approaching the counter.

"Shad! Oh no worries about that. I'm just glad you could make it over here. The usual?" Telma asked.

"Yes, I should think so. Some hot tea would probably do me good after being out in that," Shad said, though you still couldn't see him.

"Hmm, it definitely would be..." Telma glanced over at you, "Say, honey, how about that? Would you like some hot tea?"

"Telma, who are you talking to?" Shad asked, slowly moving into your sight. You stared up at him, taking in his damp, reddish-brown hair and large circular glasses. "Oh dear. Hello. I don't believe we've met."

You opened your mouth to speak, but moment later found it buried in your hands again. "Hhh-tchoo! Hah-tchoo!" You sniffles miserably, cheeks growing hot in embarrassment. "Sorry..."

"This is [name]," Telma introduced you, "Link found her out in Hyrule field, half frozen to death. She's lucky she's only got a cold."

Shad hesitated for a moment, then smiled down at you. "Well, tea does wonders for colds, so you're in luck then." The man's eyes flicked over to the fire. "Say, you wouldn't mind sharing, would you? I'm sure I haven't been out as long as you were, but I'm positively freezing." He gestured to the fireplace, and you shifted to make room for him.

Telma brought you both cups of tea a few minutes later. You'd finally warmed up to the point where you stopped shivering so much, but the warm drink in your hands still felt wonderful. Shad sat next to you, politely sipping his tea and glancing over at you between sips.

"Say, [name], you can't be much younger than me. What's a young woman like yourself doing out in Hyrule field in a rainstorm?" Shad asked you.

"I was coming to visit the town," you answered, taking a sip of your tea, "I used to live here, and when I heard about what was happening, it gave me an excuse to come visit."

"You chose quite a day to travel," Shad mused, glancing down at your sopping clothing, "I don't suppose you've anything dry to wear?"

You shook your head. "My packs been soaked through for days. There's nothing dry left in there."

Shad fell silent for a moment, sipping his tea and silently contemplating. After a long moment, he shook his head. "Well, that simply will not do, will it? Do you have any money?"

Confused, you shook your head. "Spent all of them during the trip he-hhh-here. Ha-tchoo!" Luckily, your teacup was empty and Shad was able to snatch it away before you dropped it.

"Goodness! Bless you. Well, since you haven't any money, I shall pay for a set of dry cloths for you." You were about to protest, but Shad kept talking, "No, no! I won't hear it! You need dry clothes, miss. I shall deliver them personally to wherever you're staying the night. And...where would that be?" He asked, his glasses glinting in the firelight.

"I offered to let her stay here," Telma said from the bar, "but I'd really prefer if she had a proper place to stay the night. You know, a bed or something to sleep on."

Shad sprang to his feet. "Well, that's simple then. I have a guest room at my home that she'd be welcome to stay in." He handed both teacups to Telma then turned and offered me his hand. "It would be much better for your health, dear. I can assure you of that." Not wanting to pass up the opportunity to sleep in a warm bed, you nodded and took his hand. He pulled you to your feet, the motion making you a little dizzy.

"Well, that would be great, Shad!" Telma said, grinning, "She'll be much more comfortable in an actual bed, especially seeing as she's ill." Telma turned her smile toward you. "You two best be going then. The best thing for a cold is sleep, is it not?"

"Quite so," Shad agreed, gently leading you toward the door, "Don't worry. It's really not that far to walk." You stepped outside, the wind and rain making your whole body tremble the second the door closed behind you. A couple of sneezes exploded from you, the force almost knocking you backwards. Lucky for you, Shad had put an arm around your back.

Without another word, you headed across town to Shad's home. The streets were deserted and there was nothing to hinder the icy winds that whipped through the streets. At some point, Shad had pulled you close to him to keep you warm.

Finally, you both stepped into Shad's home. You'd barely opened your mouth to thank Shad for his hospitality when a sudden itching in your nose made you turn away. "Ha-tchoo! Hahh-tchoo! Ha-tchhh!" This time, the sneezing actually did knock you backwards, and you would have fallen if Shad hadn't caught you.

"Whoa!" he said, standing you back up and carefully leading you to his guest bedroom, "You're quite sick, miss [name]. It really wasn't wise to travel in this poor weather."

"I know. I'm starting to regret it..." you mumbled, sniffling. Shad helped you get settled in to bed and left some handkerchiefs for you on the bedside table. He said he would be back in a bit with dry clothes for you, but you were so tired and sick that you were asleep as soon as he left.


End file.
